Looking for Something More
by hmweasley
Summary: Andromeda and Molly run into each other in a park years after Hogwarts. As their kids become friends, they might be becoming more.


**A/N: Written for Sapphic Season over on HPFC using the prompt "misunderstanding".**

**Word count: 2,456**

* * *

Andromeda had a smile on her face as she watched Nymphadora run around the park with a trio of red-headed boys. It was nice to see her carefree. At only six years old, Nymphadora had been struggling with her parents' divorce, and even a year later, Andromeda struggled with keeping her mind off of things.

The light autumn breeze ruffled Andromeda's hair, and she reached up to brush a strand of it away from her face.

"Is she yours?"

Andromeda glanced up to find a kind-looking woman standing next to the bench she'd claimed. Her bright red hair was eye-catching; Andromeda realized that she must be the mother of the boys Nymphadora had befriended.

"Yes," Andromeda replied with a hesitant smile.

She still worried, in moments like these, that Nymphadora's father would be mentioned, and Andromeda would again have to stumble through the reasons their marriage had failed to someone who it didn't really matter to.

"You're Andromeda Black, aren't you?"

Andromeda's eyes widened. No one had used her maiden name in years. It carried so much pain that she'd kept her married name after the divorce. She scrutinized the woman until she finally placed the face with a name.

"Molly Prewett!" she exclaimed, letting out a slight laugh.

The woman smiled, and Andromeda knew she'd been right. A few extra lines marked Molly's face, but she had the same eyes and the same bright hair. Once Andromeda had pieced it together, it was unmistakably her. Though Molly had been a few years older and in Gryffindor, Andromeda remembered her well because of her brothers, who had always been keen to put on a show.

"I haven't been a Prewett for a long time," she said with a laugh. "Arthur and I married after school."

Andromeda's momentary excitement over seeing her old classmate was quickly usurped by the anxiety of knowing she had to update her on her own life.

"I'm not surprised," Andromeda said with a polite smile. "The two of you were always the talk of the school. Actually, I'm not a Black anymore either. My last name is Tonks."

Molly nodded, not looking surprised in the least.

"You and Ted were adorable together," she remarked with a fond smile. "And your daughter looks just like him."

Andromeda sighed and looked at Nymphadora as she shoved playfully at one of the boys. Yes, Nymphadora had taken to keeping her features as similar to Ted's as she could since the divorce, like she needed a way to hold onto him when he wasn't around. Andromeda wondered if she made herself look like her mother when she was with Ted, but she'd never worked up the courage to ask.

Molly patted her gently on the arm, and Andromeda felt an embarrassing tingle across her skin. She had to resist pulling away and revealing herself.

She had spent years suppressing her feelings for other women, but it hadn't worked in the end. It still hadn't been easy to explore those feelings since the divorce. There was Nymphadora to care for, and if Andromeda was honest, part of her was still scared to fully explore that part of herself anyway.

But slowly it was easier for her to acknowledge her attraction. Molly was warm and inviting, a demeanor that drew Andromeda to her, especially after everything that had transpired the previous year. Her brown eyes had flecks of gold that made them warm, and Andromeda could have easily gotten lost in them.

Andromeda shook herself. Molly was married, and in any case, it wouldn't do for her to be flirting when her daughter was only several feet away. Her daughter who still liked to ask her when her and Ted would make up so her dad could move back home.

Clearing her throat, Andromeda said, "So, three boys? They must be a handful."

Molly laughed, shaking her head fondly as she looked at her sons.

"Oh, they are. But they're very different personality-wise. Bill and Charlie are adventurous. They're exactly what I expected to get when I found out they were boys, you know? Always getting into trouble. Percy's only three, but he's quite different. He loves rules and always does what I ask. The most trouble he causes is crying when one of the other boys upsets him."

Andromeda laughed, watching the three-year-old in question as he followed his older brother around the playground dutifully.

"I can't imagine what that's like," she admitted. "Nymphadora is a troublemaker herself. She's already started doing accidental magic, though I suspect some of it is deliberate. I can't take her to Muggle parks anymore. Last time, she rained dirt down on a Muggle girl. The mother was livid; she thought Nymphadora had thrown it. I suppose she wasn't wrong in a way."

Molly laughed.

"Yes, mine have had their fair share of similar incidents. I always wanted a lot of kids, but I'm starting to think it's a good thing that I only have three. They're more than enough to handle."

Before Andromeda could speak, a loud cry pierced the air. Percy sat on the ground, his head thrown back as he wailed. Nymphadora stood beside him, blinking down at him as if she was trying to work out if she'd done something wrong or not.

"Oh, dear," Molly tutted. "That means it's time to go. He'll be having a nice, long pout now."

She stood, and Andromeda felt a pang in her heart at the knowledge that she might not see her again.

"Bill, Charlie, time to go!" she called across the park.

Both boys grumbled but obeyed, with Bill taking it upon himself to grab Percy by the hand and drag him along to their mother. Nymphadora followed the boys as if she, too, had been called.

Molly turned to Andromeda with a smile.

"It was wonderful catching up with you," she said. "I hope to see you again soon. Do you come to this park often?"

"Sometimes," Andromeda lied.

It had been their first time there, after the incident at the Muggle park, but she had planned on making it a regular thing anyway, so that detail didn't much matter.

"Well, we come almost every day, usually in the afternoon when it's warmest. Maybe we'll be seeing each other again?"

She waited for an answer, her eyes intent on Andromeda.

"Of course," she responded with a shaky smile.

Molly's face lit up.

"Wonderful!"

The boys arrived at her side, and she picked Percy up, patting him on the back and tutting about everything being okay. She glanced at Andromeda one more time.

"Have a nice day!"

Andromeda watched her go in a daze, only brought back to reality when Nymphadora began tugging at her sleeve. Andromeda looked down at her daughter and cleared her throat.

"Shall we go home?"

Nymphadora frowned but nodded, taking Andromeda's hand as she stood.

* * *

Andromeda dropped the peeled potatoes into the boiling water and covered the pot. She glanced at Nymphadora before she started chopping the carrots. Her daughter had sat herself down at the kitchen table and begun scribbling on some paper with Muggle crayons. The paper was a mess of colours that Andromeda couldn't make sense of.

"Can we go back to that park, Mummy?"

Andromeda hummed, glancing back over her shoulder as she pushed the chopped carrots to one side of the cutting board.

"Did you enjoy it?" she asked, trying to ignore how much she wanted to receive a yes.

"Of course!" Nymphadora levelled Andromeda with her sassiest look. "Those boys were so cool. Especially Charlie. He as an invisibility cloak at home, Mummy! He said he has the best mummy ever and she bought it for him."

Andromeda laughed. If there was an invisibility cloak, she was willing to bet it was a toy for playing pretend. Not even the most snobbish of pureblood families would give a young child an invisibility cloak to play with.

Still, she could believe that Molly was a better mum than she was. Molly had three kids and exuded a warmth that Andromeda couldn't imagine possessing. Meanwhile, Andromeda had one kid and felt like she was running around like a headless chicken most of the time.

"We'll go back," she promised, patting Nymphadora on the head as she passed by her to grab a spoon.

Nymphadora batted her hand away and went back to colouring, humming to herself as she worked. Andromeda laughed, feeling lighter with the knowledge that she might be seeing Molly again soon.

* * *

They went back to the park. It became part of their routine. Andromeda learned when Molly and her own boys would be there, and she brought Nymphadora at the same time.

Molly always greeted her with a smile.

As time passed, Andromeda learned more and more about her. They talked about their days, traded tips on childcare, and even talked about the books they were reading. Andromeda came to understand Molly better than she understood anyone else other than her daughter.

Yet one thing she still knew nothing about was Molly's husband. She remembered Arthur Weasley from school. He'd been a kind boy who had a strange fascination with Muggles. Andromeda might have heard something about him going into the Ministry years ago, but she wasn't sure if she remembered that detail correctly.

She kept waiting for Molly to say something about him.

Her attraction towards the other woman had grown along with their friendship. She found herself thinking of Molly throughout the day more and more as time went on, only to scold herself seconds later for holding onto such foolish fantasies.

Molly was married. Andromeda couldn't be thinking about her like that. It was inconsiderate.

Eventually, the anxiety was too much. As they sat on the same bench where they'd re-connected, watching their children run about the park, Andromeda couldn't help but ask, "So, what is Arthur doing these days?"

Molly answered the question with silence. Her smile fell, and Andromeda immediately knew that she'd said something wrong. Her stomach clenched as she waited for whatever was coming.

When she did finally answer, she kept her eyes on the children.

"Arthur died last year."

A chill coursed through Andromeda's body. That possibility had never occurred to her. They were still too young for such a thing. She didn't dare ask what had happened to him.

"I'm sorry," she said instead.

A new sense of admiration for the other woman sparked in Andromeda. Being a single mum had been difficult, but Ted was still there for the most difficult parts, and he took care of Nymphadora frequently. Molly had been raising three boys alone for a year, and Andromeda hadn't even known.

So many of the parenting tips Molly had provided made better sense in hindsight.

"What about Ted?" Molly asked, trepidation in her voice. "You don't speak much of him either. What does he do?"

"He works at the Ministry. His work is his life. That's probably what led to our divorce."

Molly froze.

"You're divorced?"

Andromeda stuttered over an answer. She'd sworn that had come up at some point, but perhaps it hadn't. She had just started to assume that everyone around her knew that part of her life.

"Yes," she said slowly. "We separated about a year and a half ago."

The sympathy in Molly's eyes somehow turned Andromeda's insides to mush despite the countless similar looks she'd received since Ted had moved out.

She let Molly pat her on the arm, trying to ignore the feelings it stirred in her. Now that she knew Molly was single, it was even more tempting to fantasize.

But Molly was still grieving. The look on her face when she'd spoken of Arthur's death was proof of that, and even if she wasn't, she was certainly straight, Andromeda reminded herself.

That was why Andromeda wasn't brave enough to share the real reason she and Ted had separated.

* * *

Several months passed, and Andromeda didn't know what to do with herself. Sometimes, she swore that Molly was flirting with her, but that couldn't be right. Her husband had died a year ago; she'd said nothing to hint that she was interested in women; and their children were always within eyesight when they spoke. Andromeda knew it was her own foolish hope colouring her view of the situation.

They sat on the bench that, in many ways, Andromeda had come to think of as theirs. Nymphadora, now the best of friends with all three of the Weasley boys, shouted at Charlie as she hung from the monkey bars.

Molly speaking pulled Andromeda out of her quiet contemplation.

"I'm sorry if this is abrupt, but I've wanted to ask you something for a while, and I need to just do it before I talk myself out of it again."

Andromeda raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?" she asked.

Molly hesitated only a second before speaking.

"Before I say it, I just want you to know that, if you say no, we can pretend like this never happened. You've become a great friend to me, and I don't want to ruin that by doing something stupid."

Andromeda stared at Molly, trying to decipher what she could possibly mean.

"Nothing you do could ever scare me off, Molly."

And it was true. Far truer than Molly could possibly know.

The red-headed woman took a deep breath and steeled herself.

"Would you go on a date with me?"

Andromeda stared at the other woman, blinking dumbly. There was no way she could have heard Molly's question correctly.

But she had, and Molly had taken her silence as a negative sign. Her cheeks turned a bright red that would have been adorable under different circumstances but which Andromeda needed to get rid of immediately.

Molly went to stand, and Andromeda's hand shot out to touch her arm. The sparks that traveled up her arm no longer scared her as they once had.

"I'd love to go out with you," she said breathily.

Molly exhaled, sitting back down the bench. It took a second for her to smile, but when she did, it was blinding.

"Really?" she pressed. "I thought you weren't interested, since you hadn't said anything. I only hoped."

Andromeda laughed.

"I'm an excellent actor then," she said, "because I've been longing for this since the first day we ran into each other at this park. I thought _you_ wouldn't be interested."

Molly joined in her laughter.

"I suppose we were both mistaken then."

The two women smiled at each other for a moment, silently locking their fingers together between them. Andromeda's cheeks began to burn from her smile, but that did nothing to quell her happiness. She hoped nothing ever would.


End file.
